Herman Cain Gets Secret Service Protection

GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain now has Secret Service protection. Philip Elliott of the Associated Press is reporting that "Cain asked for the security and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and congressional leaders approved his request Thursday, Secret Service spokesman Ed Donovan confirmed."

It is being widely reported that Cain received threats, but no specific details about the threats have been released. The Cain campaign released the following statement on Friday:

"Due to the recent surge in the polls and the large crowds of enthusiastic supporters at recent campaign events, we are appreciative of the extra level of protection provided by these elite professionals," the Cain campaign said in a statement.

The AP reported in June that a man called the Cain campaign office in Stockbridge, Ga., identifying himself as a member of the Ku Klux Klan, telling Cain not to run, and that there is no such thing as a "black Republican."

We're not surprised that Herman Cain needs Secret Service protection. This isn't the first time that an African-American presidential candidate has needed Secret Service protection. Ed O'Keefe of the Washington Post reports that President Obama holds the record for receiving protection the earliest and had Secret Service agents at his side over the course of 629 days on the 2008 campaign trail. But Ronald Reagan holds the record for the most “protection days”: Over the course of his 1968, 1976 and 1980 campaigns, the Secret Service protected Reagan for 791 days.

It is clear that crazy people do not discriminate. The assassination attempt on President Obama, and Herman Cain getting Secret Service protection, in the same week suggests that black men in powerful places literally drive some folks mad. As public figures, politicians in general face danger by overzealous supporters and detractors. Hopefully the Secret Service will do a better job of protecting Herman Cain than they did protecting the White House.